The Clan continued to watch Auntie Junia and their Lord as they practiced their new abilities.
The surroundings grew louder along with their abilites—voices overlapping, children daring one another closer to the lake, sentinels arguing half-seriously about whether the stone steps had always been that even. The power had not settled like dust. It became more enticing for the Clan and speculations on what their own abilities would be spread.
Talia stood near the water's edge, sleeves rolled, boots damp, listening to the low murmur of stone beneath her feet. It still answered her when she paid attention, it seemed to always be, just… there.
Theo came up beside her when she stopped for a break.
"You should upgrade the Territory," he said quietly.
Talia blinked, then grimaced. "Right, that."
Theo didn't push, he simply waited and stared.
She hadn't forgotten, she'd just… delayed it. Talia exhaled, wiped her wet hands on her trousers, and touched the inside of her wrist.
The panel unfolded in her awareness without fanfare. Her eyes skimmed the status once—then slowed.
Seeing the requirements had all been met, she could upgrade. Talia pressed confirm.
This time Talia could sense the Divine energy flow out from the Pillar beside her and her senses followed the expansion of energy as it flowed out to the new Territory borders. She watched as Divine energy poured into the soil enhancing the fields, it flowed into all nature within the Territory, plants and animals. She also felt how the energy settled in the air around and seemed to calm it in a way.
Talia now truly had an understanding of how important Deities were to a Territory.
A system notification resolved itself across her vision, neutral as ever:
[Territory
Population: 300 capacity
Core Land Radius: ~3 km
Hunting Grounds Radius: ~7 km
A few people felt it before she spoke—the way the pressure in their ears shifted, the way the lake seemed suddenly closer, more included.
"The core expanded," Talia said aloud, mostly to ground herself as she manipulated the borders. "We're pulling in the waterfall, the lake, and the outer fields. The mountain interior is fine for now."
Dav and Theo had their heads together talking, as Theo's fingers sketched shapes in the air, as if drawing lines only he could see.
"Hunting grounds," Theo said, thinking aloud. "We can't pull the whole forest, but we can… this."
He drew a straight line from the tunnel outward, then fanned his hand wide, like opening an umbrella.
"Controlled expansion," Dav said. "Clear forward visibility. Easier patrol rotation."
Theo nodded. "Done."
The land accepted the change with a shift of the Divine energy fluidly moving to the corrected borders.
She scanned the panel again, eyes narrowing at the next line.
"…Two more rituals before the next upgrade," she muttered.
Auntie Junia calmly commented. "It will come in time. They are now planned."
Talia closed the panel and turned back to the group that had unconsciously formed a loose semicircle around her. Wet clothes, mud-streaked boots, slate tablets half-raised as if this might suddenly turn into a lecture.
She cleared her throat.
"Thank you," she said simply.
That earned her more attention than any announcement would have.
"For the work, your patience and for not panicking when the universe decided to… toss us around."
A few tired smiles surfaced.
"We have over a hundred days before Whitefreeze," Talia continued. "And we are going to be ready. Work resumes as normal tomorrow. But no heroics and no burnouts, just steady progress."
She paused, then added, "I'll start working on the second floor. It's going to be the Governing, Medical and Education floor. That should be finished in around two to three weeks."
Theo smiled faintly, he'd been waiting for that.
Then Talia's expression sobered.
"One more thing," she said. "From now on, I need everyone to try." The word landed carefully.
"Connection," she clarified. "You've seen what it does. It's safer here to have a deity's protection than to stand alone."
Murmurs rippled, not resistance but recognition.
"I'm not saying you have to succeed immediately," Talia went on. "Faith can't be forced, but power here has consequences, whether we acknowledge them or not."
Her gaze swept the group and reiterated
"Faith can't be forced," she said again. "But power must be earned."
Auntie Junia stepped forward then, shawl damp at the hem, eyes bright with the kind of exhaustion that comes from purpose.
"I can help," she said gently. No one laughed or dismissed her, she had already been recognised.
"There are daily practices," Junia continued. "Not prayers or rituals. Just… habits, that can help you become closer to Gaia."
She spoke slowly, grounding each word.
"Being present and letting yourself feel small moments—the sun on your face, wind through your hair, your feet in the soil. Thanking what you take, even the kills."
A few hunters nodded, uncomfortable but attentive.
"Honouring your emotions," Junia added. "All of them, even the ugly ones. Harmony isn't pretending they aren't there, it's letting them move without breaking you."
People began writing, thoughtfully. Junia took a larger slate and carefully etched the practices onto it, then placed it beside Gaia's Pillar without ceremony.
That was when things… loosened.
Someone jumped into the lake with a whoop. Two more followed. Farmers wandered out to the fields, boots sinking into soil as they closed their eyes and breathed. Children lay flat on warm stone, arms spread like they might absorb it.
Talia watched the chaos unfold with a wry smile.
"Are they communing," she asked dryly, "or playing?"
Her family looked at her.
Cael raised a brow. "Look who's talking."
"I am serious in all I do," Talia said primly.
"Yes," Cael agreed. "Including playing."
Talia narrowed her eyes, turned, and marched straight into the shallows. With a sharp gesture, she flicked water toward the nearest swimmer.
"I am helping you connect with nature!" she shouted as the splash soaked three people at once.
The shrieks that followed echoed off the stone.
Laughter rolled through the valley, unrestrained and alive.
The next morning, Talia climbed the ramp toward the second floor, boots steady, shoulders heavy with plans.
Deepway was no longer just a settlement.
It was becoming a sanctuary.